Qijia Yanxi: From Oral Epic to the Qinqiang Stage

Qijia Yanxi appears in the National Ethnic Affairs Commission’s account of Tu narrative poetry. In 2018, a Huzhu troupe brought a Qinqiang adaptation to Beijing under the title “The Tu Commander.” Its central figure, the Ming-era commander Qiyanxi, defends his home and the country’s territory.

The adaptation gave a narrative poem a different performance form. Roles and scenes carried the story through a regional opera tradition, bringing an epic associated with the Tu people to a theatre audience beyond Huzhu.

The troupe began in 2011 by gathering performers from six amateur drama groups in Huzhu townships. It became an arts company in 2017. A Ministry of Culture report recorded 50 performers, all farmers, and a repertoire of more than 30 traditional plays.

The company performed around the Huangshui region, including school and community shows. “The Tu Commander” grew within that network of local performance before reaching Beijing in 2018. Its journey joins two histories: a narrative inherited through Tu literature and a company formed from township drama groups, whose performers carried both traditional repertoire and a new adaptation to their audiences.